NCJ Number
85662
Journal
Kriminologisches Journal Volume: 13 Issue: 2 Dated: (1981) Pages: 84-103
Date Published
1981
Length
20 pages
Annotation
Fundamental contributions were made to criminology by French theorists of the 19th and early 20th centuries; subsequently the course of French criminology has been less notable and its future, though promising, remains in question.
Abstract
The French boast early breakthroughs in criminology: the first crime statistics, uninterruptedly published since 1827; initial linking of urbanization and deviance among the underprivileged; and the works of Durkheim, Lacassagne, and Tarde. Despite the upsurge of criminology after World War II and the international acclaim of individual Frenchmen (P. Amour, M. Ancel, J. Pinatel), criminology in France remained stagnant into the 1960's, when fruitful work appeared on juvenile crime. As a result of the long hiatus, French criminology is still striving to define itself, gain recognition abroad, and absorb the advances made elsewhere. Influence from abroad has been limited to American trends, and criminology is still treated as an auxiliary discipline to fields such as law and psychology. In addition, it lacks a strong institutional foundation. Current research is not being done under academic or governmental auspices, but is fragmented among two large and many independent institutes. The future is threatened by limited data collection capabilities and divisive competition between inevitable government-sponsored and independent research. A positive alternative would be coordinated, cooperative research planning and greater emphasis on empirical, data-based research designs. The references contain 44 entries.